Abandoned boy wants an education

A desperate man is seeking assistance in finding his estranged wife who dropped off their son at his home and then disappeared. He needs to get his son into school but lacks the necessary documents.

Michael Mathebula works as a live-in caretaker at a residential complex in Florida Park. On the morning of Saturday, 11 January, Michael found his son, Karabo, waiting at the gates of the complex after having allegedly been left there by his mother. Karabo had been living and attending school in Giyani, Limpopo but has now found himself in Roodepoort without a school.

Michael needs to enroll Karabo in a school but has no birth certificate for his son and is unable to acquire one as the boy’s mother is from Lesotho. Her name is Gladys Sedimo and he has attempted to contact her family as well as visited her last known residence, but is still unable to locate her. He has attempted to file a missing person’s report with the police but was told the last persons to have seen Gladys, in this case her family, would need to file the report.

Turning eight years old this year, Karabo is missing crucial stages of his education. Formerly of Tshembhani Primary School, Michael was willing to help get him back to Giyani. “I wanted to give Gladys money to take him back to Limpopo to live with my family, but I cannot find her,” a distraught Michael said. He is aware of his son’s needs but without Gladys, his options are limited and he has few places left to turn.